Permaculture Club could maintain rain garden at lake park
Wednesday, October 23, 2019 • The Hammonton Gazette • Page 3
COMMISSION, from Page 1
Hammonton Lake Park.
“There was a concern on this
committee’s part about ongoing
maintenance of the rain garden
once Rutgers and PPA stopped
tending to it for the first year of
proper establishment. We began a
search for an appropriate sponsor
and after a couple of ideas were
tried and teetered out, a lightning
bolt struck us in the parking lot of
Lake Park by the Canoe Club. A
gentleman who is a professor at
Stockton and also a member of the
Permaculture Club said ‘Why
don’t you ask us?’ So, earlier this
month I visited my friends at the
club,” Bachalis said.
Bachalis went on to explain the
reasons why this particular club
would be a perfect fit to take on
the job of maintaining the rain gar-
den, including the fact that they
meet monthly at the Canoe Club
which is located right where the
garden would be installed.
Bachalis then introduced the
group’s founder and chief, Greg
Vizzi.
“We support people who are
farming and gardening. We gather
the first Wednesday of the month
and invite whoever is interested to
come on out and spread the word
of permaculture and solutions to
the industrial agriculture that we
see all around us, which is very
damaging and unsustainable,”
Vizzi said.
The Pinelands Preservation Al-
liance would need a five-year
commitment from any entity that
decided to take over maintenance
of the garden. The Hammonton
Parks and Recreation Commission
followed that up by expressing
their concern over the area being
left to its own devices and deterio-
rating over time like a similar proj-
ect by the high school.
“I love the idea, I think it’s great,
but I don’t want to see it turn into
weeds. We have to make a com-
mitment as a municipality and we
need someone else to make a com-
mitment to us,” commission mem-
ber Councilman Sam Rodio said.
“I love the project and I’m to-
tally in favor. I’m also in favor of
learning from our mistakes. The
rain garden at the high school was
doomed to failure because we had
no real expertise there. From my
perspective, the Permaculture
Club has that expertise to make
this project a success,” commis-
sion member James Borda said.
“The Permaculture Club had the
passion to come sit here with us
for a half hour and tell us that they
are going to care for it, I’m com-
fortable with that. This is an op-
portunity for us to have something
installed at the Lake Park with no
cost to the town. With that being
said, a motion would be dependent
on three things. One, the PPA still
has the grant available. Two, we
would ask for a formal pledge that
the group will care for the rain gar-
den for the next five years and fi-
nally, our lake committee would
make sure it’s on their itineraries
to supervise the garden on a regu-
lar basis,” vice chairman Paul Or-
dille said.
Ordille made a motion to ap-
prove the project based on the
three recommendations, seconded
by Borda and approved unani-
mously.
Commission member Council-
woman Brooke Sacco then up-
dated the group on some events
around Hammonton including
Junk Week, updating the water
tower and the very successful
“Clocktoberfest.”
The commission’s next meeting
will be held at town hall on No-
vember 19.
Theft from vehicle
HPD, from Page 2
quently not used as a primary iden-
tification and are used for specific
types of transactions that do not
usually occur on a daily basis,”
Friel said.
Sgt. Sean Grasso is the investi-
gating officer, Friel said.
Holiday Vendor/Craft Fair at
Hammonton Center Nov. 23
HAMMONTON—A Holiday Vendor/Craft Fair will be held on Saturday, November 23 from 10 a.m. to
2 p.m. at Hammonton Center. Tables are available. If you want to sign up as a vendor, call Regina Tegan
at (609) 320-2294. Shoppers can find something for everyone on their holiday list. Hammonton Center
is located at 43 N. White Horse Pike in Hammonton.
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